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31 May 2007

Of course, one should be careful not to pick up items that Norm has already picked apart.

Still, for the sake of an argument (seeing as how I am Jewish and cannot leave any subject alone): there is at least one other state that could be easily characterized as heavily militarized, nuclear-armed, expansionist, apartheid, with extensive illegal settlement, land seizure and many thousand years of wall-building experience.

Not that Mr Chalcraft would notice this in his pompous sloganeering... but we have been there already.

The boycott fever consuming the fair island of Albion has erupted again yesterday.

Delegates at the first conference of the new University and College Union in Bournemouth voted by more than three to two to recommend boycotts in protest at Israel's "40-year occupation" of Palestinian land and to condemn the "complicity" of Israeli academics.

There are some strings attached to the boycott resolutions, which will become clear as time goes by.

The 158 UCU members who voted for the motions are by no means a homogeneous group and there were several motivating factors that caused them to vote this way. I am not even trying to suggest anti-Semitism as a main factor, although it is definitely one of them. The problem with this specific subject is that the usual crowd will drag out the usual straw man "Jews always cry anti-Semitism", and the resulting brawl will lead to a dead end.

Of course, sheer ignorance and indifference of the majority made it that much easier for the shrilly group of anti-Israeli lobbyists to pass the resolution. And the best proof of it is the fact that hardly anybody of the pro-boycott crowd ever tried to answer one simple question: why it is Israel that is singled out? And hardly anybody of the indifferent "pro" voters ever asked this question.

But all this is a subject for in-depth analysis of the whole story that will inevitably follow as the dust settles. I would like to focus on an example of a "grass-root" pro-boycott scientist, which example is courteously provided by that linked Guardian article.

During the debate, which lasted well over an hour, Michael Cushman, from the London School of Economics, said: "Universities are to Israel what the springboks were to South Africa: the symbol of their national identity."

I don't know from springboks and South Africa (interesting choice of imagery, by the way - kinda indicative of the trend). However, I am also not at all sure that universities are that symbolic. What about, you know, Jerusalem, the Western Wall, Ben Gurion, gefilte fish, "never again" and all this stuff?

Israel wanted to claim it was a normal democratic state and universities were integral to that, Mr Cushman said. "[But] it is not a normal state. They are not normal universities. "Senior academics move from universities into ministries and back again," he said.

Only Mr Cushman knows what is the meaning of the above. How Israel is different from a "normal state" in these movements of academics is a mystery that shall remain unresolved without an investigation, and the question is hardly worth investigating. Anyway, here comes the main point:

"Regularly, lecturers take up their commissions in the Israeli Defence Force as reserve officers to go into the West Bank to dominate, control and shoot the population."

This is really the essence of the primitive black and white vision so typical of the learned discourse one can easily find on the talk-backs and discussion forums of British press. This is the rotten fruit grown in a mix of ignorance, indifference and, in case of Mr Cushman who seems to be Jewish, an ardent desire to distance himself from the bloodthirsty Zionists.

Yes, Mr Cushman, you have succeeded admirably. You shall never be required by your dean to bring several fresh scalps of Palestinians from your reserve service, unlike your less fortunate brethren in Israeli universities. So rest assured that your "not in my name" was heard loud and clear and the next time they come for you, they will see that "Pass Over" sign on your door.

To end this long post, I have found another example of the mind-boggling sloganeering idiocy that shows the depth of analysis a scientist is able to display - when he/she wants to:

Is it unfair to single Israel out? It is not clear that there are other heavily militarised, nuclear-armed, expansionist apartheid states with extensive illegal settlement, land seizure and wall-building activity.

· John Chalcraft is a lecturer on government at the London School of Economics

Now - should we be surprised by the education level of some graduates with teachers like these?

There are a few signs that the face, beloved by many a couch potato will not appear on our screens anymore. The first hint of trouble appeared on this picture:

Instead of his usual threatening stare, the man appears somewhat forlorn in this snapshot. Besides, if you look closely at the curtain in the background, you could easily discern the slightly unusual six-pointed star pattern, hardly expected in the vicinity of a person who eats Zionists for breakfast. Unless, of course, he was the Elders' inside man to start with, but we have checked the records and there are no signs of his employment history. On the other hand, our archives are notorious... aw, what the heck...

Anyway, either we have already got him or, instead, his habit to start his day with stopping a bullet or two by his forehead (see the ever deepening gouge in the picture) went a bit too far, but it seems that a replacement threatener has been already rolled out.

Adam Gadahn, a California-born convert to Islam and the first American to be charged with treason since the World War Two era, appeared in a video posted on the Internet. "Your failure to meet our demands ... means that you and your people will, Allah willing, experience things which will make you forget about the horrors of Sept. 11, Afghanistan and Iraq, and Virginia Tech," said the bearded Gadahn, addressing his comments to President George W. Bush.

To remind you, Adam Gadahn aka Adam Perlman, is a sad story, obviously starting with a failed abortion attempt (and that with a prominent urologist for granddaddy!), then an apparently troubled childhood in a Christian-Jewish family that was partly spent on a goat ranch outside Los Angeles (which may explain his attraction to goat-rich parts of the world) and eventual conversion to Islam after an overdose of heavy metal.

Anyhow, his sudden rise to the position of an official Al-Qaida spokesman seems to be a poor replacement of our hands-down favorite, Al Zawahiri.

While in the picture above the youngster shows some rudimentary ability to use that finger, so masterfully displayed by Al Zawahiri, the production in general is very disappointing and unprofessional. We seriously doubt that anyone, leave alone the advertisement-hungry giants like Pepsi, Coke and Preparation H people, will jump on this poor opportunity.

So, to make the long story short - we want Al Zawahiri back and immediately. The customer is always right, please remember it, dear Al-Qaida producers. Otherwise - forget about Coke ads, and no more free Preparation H samples.

The fall of the Soviet empire brought with it a problem of thousands high level scientists being unemployed or employed for symbolic wages in various scientific organizations all over the former Soviet Union.

Many of the scientists have found employment outside of the country and emigrated, effectively putting themselves out of reach of the Russian FSB. The remaining ones, however, are feeling the increasing pressure of FSB that has one purpose: to curtail their cooperation with their colleagues abroad. And of course, to prevent direct participation of the scientists in projects initiated and financed by foreign institutions.

A typical case of this pressure is that of Oleg Korobeinichev, who heads a laboratory in the Institute of Chemical Kinetics and Combustion in Novosibirsk, part of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The linked article does not tell the whole story, which is provided in more details here.

"Not connected to Pentagon", says the article and tells the absurd tale of persecution. The charge of disclosing state secrets against Korobeinichev, dating from March 2006, was based on an expert opinion requested by FSB from undisclosed source.

The investigation by FSB took a better part of nine months and the court hearing (behind closed doors) started only in December 2006. Only then three highly regarded scientists, one of them Sergey Dzyuba, who heads the Institute of Chemical Kinetics and Combustion, sent a letter of protest. One of the amazing things that was discovered is that since 1993 (!) the institute has not undertaken any classified research activities.

The whole charge was concocted based on the Korobeinichev's own reports about his research financed by grants from US army starting in 2002 and later. The results of the research were published in the open scientific press, some of them being a part of graduate and doctoral dissertations of Korobeinichev's pupils.

According to Sergey Dzyuba, it is the first case in Russian history when a scientists is being prosecuted (or, rather, persecuted) using the results of fundamental scientific research, published openly and discussed in conferences and seminars.

During the last few years several scientists where prosecuted for similar offenses, in some cases the trial resulted in jail sentences. How many of the charges were real and how many concocted, like in case of Oleg Korobeinichev - we'll never know. One thing is clear - the message to the scientists is unequivocal, and the good old KGB is not hiding its face anymore.

28 May 2007

A person's power of self-persuasion is nothing short of miraculous. Watching the comedy unfolding in the Hay festival with the new darling of the British press, one Ghazi Hamad, I really do not know whether to laugh or to cry. The miraculous power that makes apparently intelligent people believe any outrageous lie and disregard the truth they are facing is really the best builder of mental walls. Read the report by Katharine Viner who is the features editor of the Guardian and, incidentally "the editor of the award-winning play My Name is Rachel Corrie" (nothing wrong here, it is all about art after all). The report deals with a momentous event - appearance of the above mentioned Hamas' luminary on stage at the Hay festival for an interview.

In the beginning of the article Ms Viner goes out of her way to show how excited she is by that rare treat. She does not forget to mention that Hamad spent five years in Israeli jails, as his proof of authenticity, obviously (well, she didn't tell why, so it is your guess), on the other hand she forgot to mention that he spent the same amount of time in Palestinian Authority jails. All around guy, so to say.

But then the report becomes just a recording of the guest speaker highlights. I shall skip most of it, including some pearls like "Arafat was poisoned by the Jooz", "10 months of constant shelling of Gaza after the election" etc. Let's focus on one item only:

He stated what is becoming the increasingly familiar Hamas position that Israel's withdrawal to its pre-1967 borders would effectively mean the end of the conflict.

So, Ms Viner has detected a growing peaceful tendency of Hamas. Interesting, and quite a pity the people of Sderot are not up to date on this one. But let's leave Sderot for a while, what about Mr Hamas... sorry, Mr. Hamad himself? After all, according to Wiki, his opinion is quite different:

"Israel should be wiped from the face of the Earth. It is an animal state that recognises no human worth. It is a cancer that should be eradicated."

And how about another, quite important official of the same outfit, already quoted here:

Sheik Ahmad Bahr, acting Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council, declared during a Friday sermon at a Sudan mosque that America and Israel will be annihilated and called upon Allah to kill Jews and Americans "to the very last one."

Oh, but it was all told in Arabic, which Ms Viner does not know, probably.

But no, I do not really think that Ms Viner (and too many others like her, unfortunately) is a fool. She just wouldn't see, wouldn't listen and wouldn't believe anything that interferes with her desire to accept and to embrace one Ghazi Hamad and to encourage his burning desire for peace at all costs. Including the cost of wiping out that animal state.

Alan Johnston, the BBC correspondent who was seized more than two months ago in Gaza, is healthy and unharmed and efforts to release him are "continuous", a Hamas member of the Palestinian government said.Ghazi Hamad, the government spokesman, said he knew the group holding Mr Johnston and added that he was dealing with them personally as part of efforts to secure the correspondent's release."It is a small group which is holding Alan," he told an audience at the Guardian Hay literary festival. "It is not secret, I met with them, what I know is that Alan is healthy, well and in a very good situation - this is my certain information."

It is not a secret that Hamas knows perfectly well where Alan Johnston is kept and is, in effect, orchestrating the whole kidnapping business. So, one of the kidnappers is being interviewed by the kidnappers own - and nobody gives a damn about it.

No, it is not the gullibility of fools - it is just that Ghazi Hamad provides a perfect answer for those who wish to be duped. Although - I strongly suspect that even while being duped they know the truth in the hearts of their hearts...

I am not surprised by the absolute precision of the diagnosis: after all, we, the Elders, are not exactly hiding the simple fact that we have taken over the management of the world affairs starting Jan. 1, 2000. I am also guilty in soaking myself in Alcohol and that other Narcotic at any opportunity (right now I have finished my smoking break, so what else do you need in the way of proof?).

Anyhow, I don't know about you (read the whole manifesto first, please!), but I am sold. The drudgery of Elders' conquest and mayhem has started to wear me out, and I am in need of a new spiritual pathway. So, after this quick decision I would like to turn to business at hand. It is rather a delicate situation, since the requirements are stated unequivocally:

The following suggested donations and donation levels are listed for your convenience: Please contribute all you can to help in the fight to incarcerate SATANIC ENEMIES OF A CHRIST.

$5 - Associates of a Christ $25 - Friends of a Christ $100 - Christly Benefactor $500 - Vice Priest in the Holy Church of the Mirror of Truth $1000 - High Priest in the Holy Church of the Mirror of Truth $10000 - Brother of a Christ

I want to be as direct as possible: due to being Jewish, I can hardly apply for all the roles from an Associate to High Priest. But, seeing as Christ himself was Jewish, I am quite sure that Brother of Christ is the job that is meant for me! The only hitch is that I am in a quite stressed situation where my liquidity is concerned (the Elders' wages are not what they are used to be in the days before the World conquest).

So, instead of paying for the job, I have rather hoped for a (humble, no need to be extravagant) stipend on account of becoming a second-highest dignitary in the Holy Church of the Mirror of Truth.

I sincerely hope that this offer will be seriously considered by the Jesus of Nazareth Reincarnated himself. Taking into account the wisdom of getting rid of an implacable and dangerous foe (I am being humble here) and gaining a powerful friend, my offer comes cheap.

This latest news on the new dimension of freedom of speech has made a serious impact on my understanding of Politically Correct evolution of our species. Up till now I have always imagined the political correctness mechanism as a kind of a noose that is getting tighter and tighter around our larynges, reducing our ability to utter certain words and/or sentences.

However, this imagery could not be farther from the glamorous reality. Here comes and eye-opener:

A jury in northeastern Colorado has ruled that a pile of dog doo left in the entrance of the office of U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colo., was protected political speech, acquitting a critic of the congresswoman who admitted dumping the load.

According to a report in the Greeley Tribune, a Weld County jury found Kathy Ensz, a 64-year-old retired university professor, innocent of charges for depositing, the, well, deposit.

I am not going into the political allegiance or, indeed, gender of the two heroes of this saga, both are irrelevant (I am sure) to the main thrust of this post. Main import is that of the new way of freely expressing your political platform in the framework of the PC speech.

By the way, I don't know whether you have noticed, but the same PC envelope does not include a permission to name that material that was delivered by the professor on the doorstep of the congresswoman.

Which, if my memory of inglorious pre-PC days does not lead me astray, was called just dog shit once...

P.S. I cannot wait for a derivative of this new ruling that will allow slinging the stuff at opponents in the Congress and/or Senate sessions.

In the heated debates between pro- and anti-Israeli folks there is a lot of illogical and plainly ridiculous arguments, each of the parties bringing in his/her own load of prejudices, knowledge (or the lack of it), sectarian fervor, etc.

Quite frequently you can see a drone - either pro-Israeli or anti-Israeli one, repeating ad nauseum the same tired slogans, sometimes of their own manufacture. Trying to argue with a drone is a useless and a thankless enterprise - anything you throw at one in the way of logical argument will be simply ignored, the stream of slogans continuing uninterrupted.

Sometimes the incredible stupidity of a drone gives birth to an especially entertaining statement that will leave you agape for quite some time.

2007: A Palestinian refugee camp is the target of indiscriminate shelling by the army, in its attempt to root out a band of fanatical Islamic terrorists. Civilians flee for their lives and condemn the terrorists. The Arab League itself blames the terrorists for threatening the country's security, safety and stability. However, the United Nations remains strangely silent and the world media have not run the blazing headlines about atrocities and massacres.

Could it possibly be that the world only cares about protecting terrorists if it's the Israeli army that's attacking them? The Arab League statement made it very clear why it can condemn Fatah al-Islam: the group "has no relation to the Palestinian question or Islam".

And then I remembered an exceptional in its slack-jawed imbecility (but relevant to the above) passage by a commenter that figures under the nickname Goodfairy in the gutters of Commentisfree:

As for "they can be pounded ruthlessly and mercilessly by the Lebanese army and the entire world remains silent". Well, for starters I doubt you are comparing like with like; this isn't the democratically Hamas, this is 200 cultists who have taken over a Palestinian Camp and (according to Robert Fisk) are shooting the fleeing Palestinians in the back. So they are probably CIA controlled.

Yep. You see, dear DrMike, you cannot win them all. In fact, you cannot win a single one of them, and their name is Legion (of imbeciles, but still).

26 May 2007

The following post by Ami Isseroff is copied in its entirety. The message it carries should be spread as widely as possible to show the real motives behind the boycott movement.

This matter should be of urgent concern to anyone interested in Middle East peace, and especially to groups who are debating boycotts of Israel. The anti-Israel boycott campaign is led by organizations who proclaim their humanitarian and peaceful intent. A group that claims to represent a coalition of such organizations is the "Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel [PACBI]." Their Web site, at http://www.pacbi.org, is revealing. You may not be able to see this site, which is visible in the Middle East, but may be hidden in Europe and the USA. Check the Google cache, and refer to the translated materials here: A program for wrecking Israeli-Palestinian Dialog.

The interesting message of this site is contained in several Arabic language documents at their Web site. That is quite different from the message of peace, democracy and human rights that is given to the foreign "khawaja" "marks" they are trying to convince. They do not provide the documents in English of course.

The highlights of their message, from documents that have been translated thus far:

Dialogue and cooperation contacts should only be with groups that accept right of return of Palestinian refugees, and for projects that advance the solution of the Palestinian problem "in the broadest sense."

Dialogue with groups formed for purposes of enhancing empathy, health, cultural exchange only should be avoided.

Seeds of Peace is a dangerous organization, according to the PACBI.

Those who run dialogue and cooperative ventures are traitors who live on crumbs thrown to them by the Europeans and Americans.

Dialogue is a sham, based on the premise that there are misunderstandings between the sides. The real problem is that the Zionists stole the land of the Arabs.

Israel is a European implant in Arab soil.

Dialogue groups do not fight for Palestinian rights, including right of return.

All forms of "resistance" (including terrorism) are legitimate under international law, though "many Palestinians" oppose killing of civilians, according to PACBI

This is the "humanitarian" message of the PACBI boycott coalition, which does not disclose what groups support it. As in some grade B science fiction movie, when the foreign suckers are not looking, the humanitarian angels of the PACBI morph into depraved and evil creatures who approve of terror, and consider Seeds of Peace a dangerous organization. They try to destroy any hope of constructive dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians, if they cannot subvert it to the goal of destroying Israel and denying the right to self determination to the Jewish people.

For those of us who cannot read Arabic or access the PACBI Web site, information about them is posted here, in English:

A program for wrecking Israeli-Palestinian Dialog - which shows their flow chart for determining whether it is wise to engage in cooperative projects, and PACBI - Youth Brochure where high school students can learn about the dangers of Seeds of Peace, and about the "traitors" who run such organizations, and who "accept crumbs" from the Europeans and Americans. The "Youth Brochure" provides a hate filled panorama of Palestinian Arab history, meant to "educate" Palestinian high school and university students. Ironically, it also explains that all protests about incitement in Palestinian educational materials are propaganda.

Make certain that every union group, church group or university who admits a speaker from PACBI or one of their affiliate organizations is aware of their program. Make certain that the speaker is asked what their stand is about the rights of Jews in Palestine, and whether or not they support the existence of a Jewish state of Israel, and whether or not they think all "resistance" is legitimate.

The sensationalist headline of the article: Hungry fungi chomp on radiation, accompanied by a clueless subtitle: Common pigment may allow bizarre feeding habits, gives one a view on our possible successors.

From plastic to asbestos, cardboard to jet fuel, fungi will eat just about anything. Now researchers have found another dish in the fungal diet: radiation. Not radioactive compounds, which have long been known to be on the menu — radiation itself.

Ekaterina Dadachova and her colleagues at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York have discovered that some fungi can use a molecule called melanin, a pigment also found in human skin, to harvest the energy from radiation and use it for growth.

Here they are, in all their unassuming simplicity:

These folks, feeble-minded at the moment, are managing perfectly well, thank you, in places which we tend to avoid.

Since the 1986 meltdown, at the Chernobyl Atomic Energy Station, the numbers of 'black fungi', rich in melanin, have risen steeply. Casadevall speculated that the fungi could be feeding on the radiation that contaminates the ruin of the nuclear reactor.

In the best tradition of black prophecy, so beloved by the science fiction writers of the sixties and the seventies, we can state with a good level of certainty that our heirs to that real estate of ever dwindling value are here. Waiting on the sidelines to take over and to start the long process of clean up and recovery.

Yes, they are simple now, but so what? Looking at a politician who can be motivated to respond only by a sight of a pork barrel, I am quite sure that these new folks will be able to start a civilization of their own.

Viagra could be used to help people flying eastwards recover from jetlag, according to new research. A team of Argentine scientists found the drug helped hamsters recover up to 50% faster from forward shifts in their daily time cycles.

However, the drug only worked in conjunction with light therapy, and only in one time direction - the equivalent to flying eastbound. The study features in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Whether it is a momentous discovery or just another candidate for an Ig Nobel prize, remains to be seen. However, the article omits answers to some important questions:

What are the correct times to take Viagra: before the flight, during or after it?

How to manage the consequences of the intake? Esp. during the flight?

Wouldn't celibacy and lots of cabbage soup work for the westward flights as the natural opposite of Viagra?

I've read with great interest Jonathan Freedland's last article. And (to bring on my head all the right-wingers around the Jewish blogosphere), I have to agree with the main statement: yes, victory in 1967 was as much curse as blessing.

Unfortunately, this is probably the only point I could agree with. I'm not refering to the important omissions (on purpose or not) I have found in the article, such as the Arab nations' amazing response to the results of the 6 days war. We all remember the Three Nos of Khartoum conference, that took place a few months after the war and declared, against all reason: no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with it. I do not mean Jonathan's doubtful statement on "the hints from Hamas of possible compromise" - we get about 10 to 15 flying hints a day lately, starting with the day when Hamas decided that this is the only way to avoid escalation of the in-fighting with Fatah it's facing with a good chance of losing.

What I really mean is that according to Jonathan, in his description of the mortal, political and moral disasters we are facing, he misses the most important and, frankly, insoluble in my eyes, problem that Israel is facing.

The forty years that have passed since the war have given birth to two generations of Israelis that are used to our control of the West Bank and Gaza. I am not going currently into the rights or wrongs of the occupation or, alternatively, into the rights or wrongs of the victors vs. the vanquished - this is not the purpose of this post.

Simply enough, we have a very significant and growing slice of the population that considers the occupied territories to be a rightful part of Israel - whether because of historical / religious links or due to the right of the victor or, for some, due to considerations of security - valid or not.

The short, roughly half of Israel's population (probably more, if Arab-Israeli citizens are not counted) are against any far-reaching territorial compromise with Palestinians. This part of the nation is growing steadily since the withdrawal from Gaza and its so-far disastrous consequences. We can decry the fact that Hamas, instead of winning a resounding battle in the propaganda war by pushing for a peaceful and prosperous Gaza that could become not only a good neighbor, but a palpable proof of possibility of further steps on the way to a two state solution, decided to choose the way they know best - terror and war. But the sad fact is that this withdrawal was far from a success in any possible roadmap to the peace.

I fail to see the Al-Qaida threat that Jonathan describs as mortal danger. Aside of a possible Iranian nuke, Israel is not in any danger of military defeat, no matter how much succor Hezbollah and its ilk get from their imaginary military exploits. Whether the foe that calls for the destruction of Israel is named Hamas or Al-Qaida is not really that important.

The nation is divided, and this is the most important and tragic result of the six-day war. The price of this division is the political stalemate, exacerbated by poor leadership. Of course, Hamas is making a big mistake, assuming that the weak leadership extends to military response to provocation, but this is a different issue.

As long as the nation is divided, as long as we cannot empower our leaders in their decision making process, as long as our only possible partner in negotiation - the Palestinian people - continue with self-destructive violence, which is as was, and is consistently proven, there will be no peace.

23 May 2007

DSTPFW have discovered and published the first glimpses of a sinister Zionist plot going on right under the collective nose of the British MI5, police and the Special Branch and wrecking the lives of some valiant British anti-Zionists who risk their... (here I got stuck, since I really don't rightly know what is it they have in order to risk it).

Of course, being not enlightened in the ways of the Elders, the folks of DSTPFW laughed the story off, what with the picture of Kitler and stuff. However, one should not miss the opportunity to publish a new chapter about the Elders' activities, once it became a matter of public knowledge.

In this lively exchange of notes the incomparable, albeit small, Deborah Fink tells her personal impression about the devious ways Mossad (yeah, she doesn't know better, the poor thing) uses to tap into her phone line.

Btw, I spoke to MI5 today and they think my phone could be tapped and that I should contact the police, which I did.

As if by the way, Deborah casually mentions the egregious ENGAGE, whose members, according to her, monitor her activities on the Internet.

Yes, this elist is being monitored, at least by Engage, (who also monitor Jews Sans Frontieres & jfjfp mailouts...!)!

Ach, what can one say about this incongruous and thoroughly confused report on something that really takes place but in a much more sophisticated and undetectable way? One can only tell the truth, of course when one is allowed to. So here it goes.

You see, Deborah, the Elders do not need that outdated and unreliable machinery of tapping the phone lines or stealing your e-mails to gather information on their mortal enemies. Nowadays we do it via our patented brain implants that feed us enough information to sustain a huge listening (or, rather, filtering) department, and it is not an easy job, I can tell you. We really don't need 99.9 % of the data that streams through our bug incessantly, believe me, and the strain on our listeners who regularly break down under the overload of info about the price of knickers in M&S, ways to improve your sweet voice, your unrelenting drive for greatness and higher heels and more, much more - all this is superfluous, tedious and eventually maddening. If only you could somehow arrange your thought process in an orderly fashion, lots of people will be grateful.

Re your suspicions about ENGAGE: we really use them for gory tasks of physical elimination. Look at the characters involved and judge by yourself:

Really - would you let these people do anything but menial tasks? And don't get misled by the friendly smile of the one with the towel - he uses it (the towel, not the smile) to strangle his unsuspecting victims.

So, I hope this chapter is out now and behind us. However, I have to say that there is one element in Deborah's travails that puzzled even the most experienced field operatives in the Elders' HQ. I mean this blood-curdling story of Deborah's friend who is being gang-stalked. Deborah herself gives the man a clean bill of health:

I have witnessed some of the goings on and can say that my friend is not being paranoid - he is still as sane as he's always been.

So we are not going to doubt the facts described in the story, it is just that the facts are too amazing and strange even for us (the Elders, to remind you, who redefined strange).

Other lease holders in the property were complaining that the security staff of the El Al offices were going into their demised spaces after office hours and defecating and abusing their female worker's belongings such as cardigans, toiletries and seating as well as the women's WC.

We can easily explain the part about defecating. It is a known El-Al problem, nary a flight ends without a restroom or two getting clogged. Them Zionists eat too much, I say... So it is, most probably, the same with El Al office restroom.

But how does one abuse a cardigan? Or a "seating", whatever it means? We are afraid to get too close to this bottomless pit of depravity, is all I can say on such short notice.

The rest of the story is really tame, compared to the above. Looking closely at the victim in a hostile and intimidating manner, following one in the car, drivers openly speaking into walkie-talkies, individuals with heavy duty black earpieces, Thai looking individuals and Central to Southern Africans, all of them having a striking resemblance to the El Al security staff - all these are really the basics, 101 gang stalking stuff each El Al clerk knows by heart.

But the abused cardigan - it is a totally new chapter that we'll open some day.

Oh, and Deborah: re the implant - even if you find it (it is easy - the lice tend to avoid its location because of the higher level of radiation), do not try to get it removed by an NHS sawbones! It will get all your wiring scrambled and you will never be the same, so take care!

If you thought being a judge is all about a secure tenure, respect and sowing the seeds of justice, think twice. It could be as tough as it gets, pitting a person against a jungle of thorny and stubborn legal issues that require burning lots of the midnight oil to untangle. Here is one example:

A Pakistan judge warned a couple Tuesday that their marriage was against both the law and Islam as they were both women, even though the groom had a sex-change operation 16 years ago.

The judge was hearing a case that pits the bride's father - who wants to annul the wedding on religious grounds - and the couple, who said they wed to protect the bride from being sold into marriage to pay off her uncle's gambling debts.

22 May 2007

The murder of the innocent woman in Sderot is another step in the escalation caused by the Hamas' decision to reduce the profile of the internecine strife by attacking Israel.

At the moment it looks that further escalation is the only way, judging by this:

The Popular Resistance Committees' military wing, which claimed responsibility for the barrage of Qassam rockets on Sderot that killed one woman on Monday said it would continue to fire rockets at Israel. The group's spokesman, Abu Abir, said that the salvo was timed to coincide with the Israeli television news edition.

The Israeli government, under relentless pressure of public opinion, cannot ignore the Qassams and does not have a solution other than a full-blown occupation of the Gaza strip, which will be a bloody, long and dangerous operation. Thus the tough rhetoric:

"We'll shoot till they say 'stop'!" a defense establishment source told Ynet on Thursday after IDF activity in the Gaza Strip was expanded. "We plan to operate against those who are guilty, not around them; they will be the ones to pay the price. We are aware of their Qassam launching abilities, but the more they launch, the more they will get back," the source said.

There is no visible way for both sides to back out of the corner they have painted themselves in, and until the fatal decision by IDF to go in is finalized, the violence will only escalate.

21 May 2007

My dear readers, all five or six of you: I must apologize for a post that was published an hour or so ago, while the ink is still drying.

In this unfortunate and unforgivable post, titled "Hamas - redefining chutzpa", I have tried to show that Hamas is the leader in the chutzpa business of our days. And I could not have been more wrong.

And this, I have to confess, comes from my laziness and lack of attention to the Guardian, my favorite source of adrenalin. And here it comes - pure, unadulterated chutzpa, the likes of which are not yet discovered by the eggheads:

The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, today urged the US to ask Israel to halt its military escalation. Mr Abbas made his appeal as Israeli aircraft struck Gaza for a second day running. The Palestinian Wafa news agency said it had come in a phone call to the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice. He was quoted by Wafa as asking Ms Rice "to stop the Israeli military escalation against our people and continue their efforts to push the peace process forward".

Do you see now how wrong I have been? And I must offer my profuse apologies to the good folks of Hamas.

...

But... on the other hand... let me have another take...

After all, what is Mr Abbas saying? Only that the cruel Zionists interfere with the birthright of his Hamas brethren in Gaza to lob Qassams at their neighbors on the other side of the border. Doesn't it make sense? Let's read this again: "to stop the Israeli military escalation against our people and continue their efforts to push the peace process forward". Doesn't it mean, in fact that we, the Zionists, are hindering the rocket scientists' effort to push the peace process forward?

I believe that I must apologize before the good old Mr Abbas too. It is the IDF, the bloodthirsty IDF that interferes after all, and not Mr Abbas who does not give a flying donut about the Qassams, if truth be told. Now it is crystal clear to me.

Or is it?

After all, IDF does what Hamas wants it to do, namely providing Hamas an opportunity to play out the Green Helmet scenario in Gaza and to show to the world that unspeakable cruelty of... but we have been there already.

So - my apologies are extended to IDF as well. But I am in a quandary now. Aside of me, Hamas, Abbas and IDF, who is left to blame? Could is possibly be me?

It could, I am afraid, but I shall leave it for now and go get a nap. It will be another day tomorrow .

This word is used quite widely in United States, and usually quite correctly. These days Hamas is giving this word a dimension of its own, pushing the envelope in a way hitherto undreamed of.

It was easy to see the first goal Hamas pursued by starting to pummel Israel by Qassams nine or ten days ago: turning attention from the internecine feud and killing. Instead of being seen by their own and by the whole world more clearly for what they are, which is bloody gang of murderous fanatics, Hamas has decided to switch the attention to the trick they do best, which is a) provoke Israel into action and b) start playing victims.

Hamas already succeeded in the distraction exercise, it is not for nothing that their regular cheerleaders of Indy have to mention this:

Other recent truces have been short-lived but Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said he expected this one to stick because of Israel's military action. "No one would accept to fight one another while the Israelis are shelling Gaza," he said.

(As a side remark, the article that is the source of this quote is titled Israeli jets strike 'Hamas targets' in Gaza. Notice the quotation marks - after all, it is known that the only target these bloodthirsty Israelis have is little defenseless children...)

Now the next step of Hamas leaders is to heat up the rhetorics in the hope that the other side will get sufficiently mad to step up the attacks. See how it is done:

A senior Hamas figure in Gaza was quoted Monday as urging Palestinian factions to "continue to fight the Jews until the last of them is gone from Palestine." In an interview with Hamas Television quoted on Israel Radio, Nizar Riyan, a leading member of the Islamic group's political wing, said: "It is a definite decision within the organization that Israel will be removed from the map, to be replaced by a Palestinian state."

What would be the sense in declaring a goal that could not be possibly achieved by this gang and not a single one of them believes in? Very simple: as the attacks by IDF escalate, the chances of innocent bystanders being hit grow exponentially. And the bloody ghouls of Hamas just pray for more blood of their own kin, using every innocent victim to the best of their considerable PR ability.

In fact, the exploitation of the merest photo op has already started, here it comes:

A Palestinian man reacts as the injured and dead are brought to hospital following an IAF missile strike in Gaza City, Sunday.Photo: AP

Does it look familiar? Don't worry, your friendly and responsive reporters from AP, Reuters, BBC and others are ready to bring you more on the horrors and Israeli atrocities. Not that there were that many of them in Sderot lately.

But on the other hand - unlike IDF, the Qassam rocket scientists could not care less where their sewage pipes fall, so if I were a journalist I would think twice before deciding in favor of Sderot over Gaza.

So - expect in a few days, if not sooner, the first headlines on the Israeli high tech cruelty, disproportional use of violence, blah blah blah ad infinitum.

20 May 2007

Anyone who sees the picture above will definitely agree that the person depicted is an owner of a major sense of humor. The face clearly shows a man who knows his joke and has delivered quite a few good ones. Of course, being a diplomat cannot but encourage the development of that sense.

Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki (yes, it's his mug) recently proved that ability. This time the joke was delivered in two parts, separated by a few days of uncertainty and doubt.

Part 1

"Every primary school student knows that it is not possible to remove a country from the map and that is very clear," he told a conference in Jordan when asked about Ahmadinejad's controversial remarks. "We are not talking about the invasion of any country," he said. He added that Iran believed that "without justice" no peace plan would end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

This quote caused not a little confusion in the ranks of political luminaries, especially the ones that firmly believed that Ahmydinnerjacket threats are serious. Of course, the quote also caused a celebration in the circles of we-told-you-Iran-is-good-guys limp-wristed peaceniks. In any case, there was some considerable stirring everywhere.

Part 2( a few days later)

Iran's foreign minister said on Saturday he had referred to the Palestinians, not Israel , when he said a nation could not be removed from the map, the official IRNA news agency said.

So, you see, the joke was on all of you, if you tried to take the joker seriously to start with. And I can imagine the laughs our joker shared with Ahmydinnerjacket afterwards.

Of course, the above mentioned limp-wristed crowd will find a way to translate the whole story into something palatable. In a few more days, take my word for it.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz visited the Gaza military unit on Sunday and commented on the IDF's response to Qassam attacks on Sderot."The terror organizations did not expect such a harsh, quick and comprehensive response. We plan to change the equation in which Hamas is the one deciding when there will be routine and when there won't, and this equation has already changed dramatically," Peretz said.

Be it as it may, but we, the Israeli citizens, have totally prepared ourselves for this and similar crapola streaming free and unchecked from our foremost military authority.

In a few days, when various human rights groups and assorted Israel-bashers start the outcry against Israeli military escalation in the Gaza strip and the inevitable innocent bystanders falling prey to our attacks on the Hamas, Jihad, Popular Resistance Committee and other gangs of the Gazan alphabet soup of wannabe martyrs, let's remember the story of the recent strife in a few easy steps:

The ever smoldering enmity between Hamas and Fatah, exacerbated by the family feuds, erupts into several clashes and in a few days becomes an open warfare between these two biggest factions wrestling for power in Gaza.

It looks at first that Hamas have the upper hand, but some more informed observers consider the outcome far from certain, some even suggesting that Fatah units are winning.

Seeing the initiative being taken away, with the merest semblance of Hamas-led statehood becoming a travesty, Hamas does what Hamas does best - turning the attention to the common enemy. The rocket scientists of Gaza open their warehouses, where the latest calm allowed them to accumulate a sizable reserve of ready to launch sewage pipes filled by explosives (after all, the area is entering a dry period, and another sewage flood is not expected till November, at least).

Israeli government, torn between the various response options, each one worse than another and consumed by its own frailty, elects the pinpoint IAF attacks on the Qassam launch teams.

Unfortunately, there are inexhaustible reserves of the launch teams (there is no need for a prolonged training) and the sewage piping, apparently prepared in huge quantities in advance or being ripped out of the ground on the go.

At the moment it seems that the rocket scientists became completely autonomous, disregarding their political branch and the elected PM Ismail Haniyeh and even the real capo di capi in Damascus - Khaled Meshaal.

During the last 7 days around 130 Qassams landed in the Western Negev, terrorizing the citizens of Sderot and other communities bordering the Gaza strip.

Where does it lead? Israel is not submitting any formal protests against the relentless bombardment, probably expecting the public opinion getting there on its own (a stupid plan if there ever were one). Right, the Pope issued a condemnation. On the other hand, the Pope also "appealed in God's name for Jerusalem to use moderation". Meaning the famous "proportional response", probably.

The game plan followed by Hamas is clear in the short term. To distract attention of the Gazan street from the internal strife and to focus it on the common target - this works most of the time, especially when the inevitable civilian victims will start coming to the emergency rooms. And even if they don't: what is the difference between a dead civilian and a dead terrorist, aside of the gun and the ammo belt?

The long term goal of the current round of violence is something that is more difficult to see. Hamas may make a serious mistake, not taking into account that our weak leaders are more prone to rash decisions and that IDF may be sent into Gaza. Unlike the leaders, IDF will come prepared, and the consequences of a full-scale invasion of the Gaza strip will be not necessarily beneficial to the Hamas gang, including its "political" figureheads. Unless martyrdom is the ultimate goal of this crowd.

There is no telling what turn the events in the near future will take, but there does not seem to be a bloodless scenario on offer.

And this may be indeed what Hamas is counting on. But meanwhile, the sewage in Gaza flows free, unfettered by the unnecessary pipes...

19 May 2007

There is no such thing as bad publicity, they say. Whoever they may be, they are unquestionably right. Mel Gibson has proved it exceedingly well, making an outlandish and, as most viewers agree, boring opus into a center of a heated public brawl for months before its first screening. And no matter how many eggs were thrown in his face, his bank account paid for all the detergent necessary to do a thorough cleaning job.

And here comes another wannabe Mel, creating another brouhaha around an opus that, frankly, I am not going to hold my breath for:

Cannes is smacking its lips in anticipation of filmmaker and provocateur Michael Moore's latest jeremiad against the US administration, which receives its premiere at the film festival today. Sicko, a documentary tackling the state of American healthcare, focuses on the pharmaceutical giants, and particularly on health insurers.

That Cannes is smacking its lips goes without saying. Anything showing US in a bad light will have the Cannes public in throes of a multiple orgasm. And of course, who else but the esteemed expert in weaving half-truths into another provocation that will appeal to the right kind of public?

The Gibson prepared by the fatso and his producer this time is definitely a new one:

Now, according to movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, whose Weinstein Company is behind the film, the US government is attempting to impound the negative.

And what, pray, would be the reason for such an extraordinary move by the 'US government'?

In March, Moore travelled to the Caribbean island with a group of emergency workers from New York's Ground Zero to see whether they would receive better care under the Castro regime than they had under George Bush. He had applied for permission to travel in October 2006 and received no reply.

In a letter dated May 2, the treasury department notified Moore that it was investigating him for unlicensed travel to Cuba, or, as the missive put it, engaging in "travel-related transactions involving Cuba."

Do you see in the above any reference to the movie? Is it the movie that has broken the law or its "creator"? Why in the whole blue world should the treasury decide to impound the movie, instead of bringing a forklift to transport Mr Moore somewhere for investigation?

And, as it is widely known, quite a few Americans travel to Cuba for this or another reason, sometimes just out of being ornery, and I do not remember seeing American jails overflowing with the inmates who has stepped over this particular line.

Anyways, if the whole story does not smell fishy to you, it may have something to do with an olfactory impediment. Otherwise, it is a lame Gibson, if you ask me. And the best proof is:

Weinstein appeared to be enjoying the brouhaha that the film is stirring up before it has even screened. "I've already told the Treasury that they are saving me money on advertising."

Indeed. Now to this new troublesome child by the trailblazer of the "new age of documentary".

To say that American health care system is perfect and does not have its woes would be stupid. Anyone who has experienced the insurance companies' tender care knows what it is all about. But what is the alternative touted by Moore? Even Charlotte Higgins, the author of the article, seems to have been taken aback by the idiocy of that:

The health secretary, Patricia Hewitt, may be surprised by Moore's ringing - if strictly speaking, factually inaccurate - endorsement for the NHS. "The poorest Brit is healthier and lives longer than the wealthiest American," he said.

Strictly speaking, indeed. Strictly speaking is not the term one would use in relation to the Moore's "documentaries", that's true. But this overwhelming comparison to the British NHS, hilarious as it might be, is just an appetizer. You see, it is the shining example of Cuban health care system that Moore had in mind embarking on this new venture.

The three sources: Wiki, CANF (the Cuban American source) and its opposite - the Cuba Solidarity site - will give you a general picture of goings-on in Cuban health care system, try to reach your own judgment. But the result is not pretty, and to expect that an already indoctrinated person will come back, after his charges receive a preferential treatment in one of the Cuban clinics for the privileged, to present an objective picture, would be a bit too much...

And let us not forget for a second the inimitable style of Mr Moore:

Of his journalistic style, he said: "It's the op-ed page. You don't say that's not journalism. I present my opinion, my take on things, based on indisputable facts. They could be wrong. I think they're right."

If a person challenging the fatso's bluff were looking for a better way to demolish him, I doubt that this person could have found a better way than just quoting the above confession. Indeed, "indisputable facts that could be wrong" summarizes the whole body of work by Moore better than anything else ever said or written.

However, let's not forget the author of the article, Charlotte Higgins. In her haste to publish she, how to say it gently, was a bit too free with her facts:

The rightwing backlash has spawned a number of documentaries questioning his methods, including Rick Caine and Debbie Melnyk's Manufacturing Dissent.

Rick Caine and Debbie Melnyk would be mightily surprised reading this, Ms Higgins. In their worst dreams they did not see being classified as a rightwingers.

Melnyk and Caine have stated that when they first sought to make a film about Moore, they held great admiration for what he had done for the documentary genre and set out to make a biography of him. During the course of their research, however, they became disenchanted with Moore's tactics.

See, Ms Higgings - you really don't want to follow in Moore's steps, publishing "indisputable facts that could be wrong". Or do you?

18 May 2007

The yearly happening in Tel-Aviv that is running for eight years is named "From Russia With Love". It is quite a serious bash, gathering more than two hundred thousand people, usually attended by local dignitaries, and leading Russian performers take part in it.

The timing of the concert is intentionally close to the celebrations of the victory day in Russia, a few days after Russians celebrate the victory in the WW II. Israel in general does not forget who made the main contribution to the Nazis defeat and are grateful to the Russian (and other) nation that sacrificed millions of its sons and daughters for the victory.

This is only a small part of the crowd, and while the ex-Soviet/Russian immigrants are prevalent, more and more Israeli-born sabras and immigrants from other places take part in the happening.

Somewhat to the northeast of the Ayarkon park in Tel Aviv where this bash happens, in the streets of Moscow, another kind of people are celebrating the same victory. This time it is Russian ultra-nationalists who have infused a good deal of religious and xenophobic sentiment into the celebrations of the victory day. Several nationalist parties (in other circumstances its members will cut each other throats cheerfully) have touchingly united their ranks for this rare occasion. You can see the colorful crowd:

Well, one can say, why not? Surely Russians deserve to be proud and happy on this memorable date? And why not let the Cossacks be Cossacks?

What harm is there in these centuries old traditional, if a bit ridiculous these days, uniforms, proudly displayed by the old-timers? None, surely.

But then the festivities turn funky:

"Russia for Russians" says the placard in the picture above. And it is just an appetizer...

This one is more to the point: "Jewish fascism - there is nothing more frightening today!". Why some existing or non-existing Jewish fascism should frighten a citizen of the mighty Russian empire, remains unknown. And the next one does not make the issue clearer:

"Jewish question today is a question of fame or infamy for Russia, a question of life and death for the Russian people", it says. What exactly is that "Jewish question" and how did it become so vital for the Russia and Russian people, especially after most of the Jews have left the area, remains to be explained. But probably wouldn't be...

Fortunately, the famous Russian sense of humor lent the procession some festive spirit.

"The kike dog on the throne", proclaims the placard, referring obviously to Putin's head on the dog's body. Poor Vladimir Vladimirovich, now he seem to be outed too! And the next one brings more clarity to the issue:

"Putin - a Jew via his mother", explains it, referring to an article by B. Beresovsky (the Jewish, albeit converted to Christianity, oligarch that resides in London and does not like Putin very much). "According to Israeli law - a pure Jew", it adds at the bottom, displaying a total confusion between the Judaic laws and Israel, which is not very surprising. The white-on-red text in the background adds some fuel to he conflagration: "Russia is not for Russian retards".

The yarmulke - equipped Putin in the center keeps his left hand on four books: Constitution (obviously Russian, since Israel does not have one yet), Talmud, Cabala and Shulhan Aruch (the main book of Jewish Halachic laws). That is to drive the point in for the most obtuse, obviously.

17 May 2007

Bibi, a.k.a Binyamin Netaniyahu, continues to provide quite regularly excellent displays of our current leadership vacuum. This article (in Hebrew) supplies a few recent bloopers that prove (according to Admiral Amy Ayalon, who is racing for the leadership of the Labor party) that Bibi is a pathological liar.

Example 1. Supervising the late Rehavam Zeevi (Gandhi)

In a Knesset session dedicated to Zeevi's memory, Bibi praised the late minister and recalled a few touching facts and anecdotes from the times when Zeevi served as a minister in Bibi's government.

"When Gandhi served as a minister in my government, he always behaved with wisdom, responsibility, solidarity and humanity", said Bibi.

Fact: Zeevi has not been a minister in Bibi's government.

Example 2. Granting citizenship to Pollard

On his site Bibi claimed (in a speech recorded in video) that he has granted citizenship to the jailed spy Jonathan Pollard.

Fact: The citizenship was indeed granted to Pollard, but during the time Shimon Peres was PM and Chaim Ramon the minister of interior.

Example 3. Pre-natal memories

In an interview to Yediot Acharonot told Bibi about his childhood memories of British soldiers in the streets of Jerusalem.

Fact: Bibi was born after the expiration of British mandate.

The three examples are only a small part of the inexplicable lies Bibi is producing with alarming frequency. It has become almost a part of routine, and the most interesting feature of the whole enchilada is that Bibi's supporters seem to be unperturbed by this character trait.

As a practical advise: being caught so frequently with his pants down, Bibi could save a considerable amount, excluding this item from his wardrobe altogether.

And regarding Admiral Ayalon's diagnosis: while Ayalon is supposed to be experienced in detecting liars, due to his stint as chief of Shin Bet, he still does not possess a medical degree. So let's leave the final diagnosis to experts. It could be just an early onset of senility...

As to the possible cure - here is a way that may work:

Or not, depending on the patient's response...

The picture above filched from here (PG 18 or according to your local custom).

Jerusalem was both "shocked" and "disappointed" by French President-elect Nicolas Sarkozy's reported selection of Socialist Hubert Vedrine as his foreign minister over the weekend.Vedrine is a well-known and not-much-beloved personage in Jerusalem, having served as foreign minister under prime minister Lionel Jospin from 1997-2002. During the height of the Palestinian violence that began in September 2000, Vedrine advocated economic sanctions against Israel within the EU.

Playing dumb will be a more fitting description for these people. What exactly did they expect from Sarkozy - recruitment of his government officials according to the list approved by the Chief Rabbi? It is France, for Bordeaux's sake!

As of Sunday, Vedrine had not accepted the offer, but if the appointment becomes official, it would likely spark outrage within the French Jewish community, an official in Sarkozy's UMP party told the Post. "There would be friction with the Jewish community. Jews in France thought that there would be a Zionist government in France, and this is a scandal for them. They will not embrace him."

And, judging by the quote above, somebody in France is mightily confused. Whether it is the official in Sarkozy's UMP party or the Jewish community, it is difficult to tell. Speaking about con...

Update: According to the latest news, there is another candidate for the job: Bernard Kouchner. It gets curiosier and curiosier...

16 May 2007

The hypocrisy of too many human rights groups that are always ready to flog to death that old horse of Israeli human rights abuses, state terrorism, fascist-like behavior, apartheid, etc. comes under a harsh light provided by this (an too many others) case.

This press release about arrests and torture -- state terrorism -- alerts us once again to the terrible situation in the Middle East. The article states:

....the 80 young men arrested are under severe torture and pressure by ... authorities but have not been officially charged yet.

Where is the committee against torture? How come they are not protesting? Where are the UN condemnations? This is an open and shut case. Eighty young heros of the resistance are being tortured by the colonialist forces of occupation and racist Zionism. Nonetheless, the rights groups are silent. HRW says nothing. Amnesty says nothing. Hey folks, TORTURE - aren't you against TORTURE? Silence! They must've been bought out by the Zionists in the Bush adminstration.

Oh, wait a minute. This is not happening in Israel. It is happening in Iran! The people are not suspected "militants:"

Right now, they are held on the account of participation in a party where alcohol beverages were found, music was playing and young people were dancing. Further, they found 16 young men who were wearing customs[probably "costumes" -a.i.]

That explains it. It is OK to torture people if they are wearing costumes and dancing. And oh yes, the report is from the Iran Queer Organization. That really explains everything. Who cares about rights of homosexuals? Certainly not apologists for the Iranian regime. Torture away, mullahs!

According to new information from Iran , the 80 young men arrested are under severe torture and pressure by Iranian authorities but have not been officially charged yet. Right now, they are held on the account of participation in a party where alcohol beverages were found, music was playing and young people were dancing. Further, they found 16 young men who were wearing customs . It is worth to note that in Iran it is very common for young people to participate in costume parties where individuals wear different outfits.

Obviously this crackdown is yet another systematic violation of human rights, along with brutal suppression of women's and labor's movements in Iran and must be strongly protested by all human rights organizations as yet another violation of people's private rights and liberties. This means that for now, what is urgently needed is to strongly object to this gross violation of human rights and the invasion of young people's lives and dignity.

Since these young men are still waiting to be officially charged, it is imperative that interested organizations, for now, avoid naming these arrests as gay crackdown until further notification. We strongly urge you to be vigilant and alert for the next few days and we are immensely grateful for your concerned follow up until the fate of these individuals is determined. In the next few days we will do everything in our power to relay information to all of you especially if and when these young men are officially charged and sentenced by Iran 's judicial authorities. Further information will be posted on the IRQO website.

B.Y.O or its more specific variant B.Y.O.B are acronyms well known and loved in many place, and even Wiki reserved a spot for explanation of this heartwarming custom.

B.Y.O.B. is an acronym for "bring your own bottle", "bring your own beer", "bring your own banana" or "bring your own booze", usually used to indicate that the host of a party or social gathering will not be providing alcoholic beverages, but that guests are welcome to bring their own if they choose to do so.

It appears that in the case of the fair city of Montreal, B.Y.O is applicable to some items you wouldn't be able to foresee.

Quebec Court awarded West Island pediatrician Peter Neumann moral and legal damages for what Neumann describes as the bar mitzvah from hell.

Bar mitzvah in general is a grisly business, but in this case there were a few new twists.

Neumann paid more than $1,000 to rent a room in the Pierrefonds Cultural Centre on Aug. 31, 2003, to celebrate his grandson's coming of age. Two caterers were hired for the 350 guests.

Things started to go wrong even before the party started when a drunken city janitor stole party ice from an ice machine, padlocked it in a freezer, then tried to sell it back to Neumann.

So B.Y.O in this case applies to ice, as you can see.

When guests twice got stuck in the elevators, the janitor, identified in court documents as Alain Blanchette, was of no help.

The next B.Y.O item would be elevators, I guess.

To add to the discomfort of the event, Blanchette didn't bother to fill the centre's toilet paper dispensers, and Neumann had to supply his own.

So toilet paper is a third item in the B.Y.O list, and I can guess that 350 guests could hardly cope with lack of this accessory.

As the evening wore on, the pianist on stage suffered a heart attack, but the custodian was nowhere to be found.

This one could hardly be blamed on the janitor, unless it is the direct result of elevators being out of order.

But the list of necessary items does not end here.

After Neumann filed for damages, he learned that someone in the city's legal department advised the city that he didn't have a case because his grandson, Ace (Alexander), wasn't even Jewish.

So, according to the city legal beagle, to sue them for negligence one should B.Y.O.J as well, however remote is the link between the fact of negligence and the cause of celebration being Jooish. Amazing, ain't it?

Well, at least someone will enjoy the proceeds of this bizarre story:

Neumann said he received the cheque this month and will donate it to charity.

I hope that the janitor, who was fired according to the article, will not receive a penny from this specific donation.